Page 70 of When Storms Ruin

The woman shook her head. “I don’t keep tabs on Phineas Wolfe, and if you had any brains in that beautiful blond head of yours…you wouldn’t either. But I can offer you a bit of information…something that could change the path before you, should you be open to it.”

“Hard pass,” Nik replied, standing straight. “I’ve had enough ‘seeing’ for one day, but thank you for the offer.”

We shuffled out onto the street, unsure where to go next. It had to be about midday based on what little of the sun we could see from down here. That meant we had already spent a few hours searching for Phineas with no success.

Each person sent us to the next location without any other information, like a treasure hunt. Except…the treasure was aspell Idesperatelyneeded and was anxious to get my hands on.

“Where do we go now?” Tess asked, hugging her arms around herself.

A cold chill ran through the air, but the angry storm clouds above hadn’t broken yet. I was thankful the rain had held off thus far. I felt the same chill run down my own spine and hugged my cloak tighter around me.

“We could always try another pub?” Puck offered.

“Did you see any other pubs? I’m hesitant to stray from the main streets without a guide,” Nik replied, his expression tight.

Behind Nik and Puck, I saw a flash of black at the mouth of the next alley. It was gone as quickly as I had seen it. Just like with Tyr.

“Did you see that?” I asked, pointing.

“I didn’t see anything,” Tess replied, turning towards the alley.

“That!” I pointed as the black figure passed the opening of the alley again, so quickly you could blink and miss it.

“Stay here,” Nik instructed, his hand on the sword at his hip.

My own hand subconsciously moved to my thigh sheath to find Stormslayer safely secured there with my throwing knives. Nik and Puck moved towards the alley soundlessly, and Tess and I quietly followed behind.

“Did I not say to stay there?” Nik hissed as he turned to glare at us, his gaze hard.

“I’ll do as I please,” I replied frostily.

Nik snickered under his breath, inching forwards. “I would expect nothing less, firecracker.”

A dark figure shot out, knocking Puck to the ground. His Katana went skittering across the cobblestones and out of reach, the black figure pinning him to the filthy street. Nik took one look at the wolf snapping its jaws in Puck’s face and turned form himself.

One moment he was standing before us in his cloak, his sword in hand. The next he was a wolf, his great black haunches poised to lunge, his mouth peeled back in a snarl. With his hackles raised he lunged for the throat of the wolf that had pinned Puck to the ground.

He was able to throw the wolf off using surprise to his advantage, but this other wolf was bigger than Nik was. It had warm brown eyes, and its coat was streaked with grey and white fur. I didn’t recognize it, and was sure I had never encountered this wolf before.

“Stay back!” Puck called to us as he scrambled for his Katana, ready to back Nik up if he needed it.

My hand moved to Stormslayer and remained steady on the hilt, ready to wield it if needed.

Nik dodged the bigger wolf, using his smaller stature and speed to his advantage. He was able to catch the other wolf by the back leg, using his sharp teeth and strong jaw to drag it backwards.

The grey and white wolf let out a yelp, turning over to show Nik its stomach. Nik didn’t move, his lips curled back over his muzzle in a snarl as his eyes held those of the grey and white wolf.

Puck pointed his sword at the chest of the enemy wolf as it lay sprawled against the cobblestones, his expression stern. “Who are you?”

The other wolf glanced back towards us, then his eyes fell on Puck once more. In the blink of an eye the wolf turned into a man, one I had never seen before.

He had salt and pepper hair and a strong jaw. He was handsome for an older man, and he raised his hands in surrender, palms up. His smile was that of a fox caught in a trap, and something about him unsettled me to my very core.

“I’ll ask again…who are you?” Puck didn’t move, the Katana still pointed at the man’s heart.

Nik remained in his wolf form, his chest rising and falling rapidly from exertion.

“The name’s Phineas Wolfe,” the man replied with a mischievous smirk, “I heard you’re looking for me?”

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